Top 20 Albums of 2008

20. Ladytron - Velocifero
19. Starflyer 59 - Dial M
18. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend
17. Coldplay - Viva la Vida
16. Be Your Own Pet - Get Awkward (UK Edition)
15. …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of the Dead - Festival Thyme EP
14. Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple
13. Los Campesinos! - Now Hold on, Youngster!
12. Flight of the Conchords - Flight of the Conchords
11. Have a Nice Life - Deathconciousness
10. Deerhunter - Microage/Weird Era Cont.
9. Sigur Rós - Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
8. M83 - Saturdays = Youth
7. Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid
6. Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
5. TV on the Radio - Dear Science
4. Why? - Alopecia
3. Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul
2. The Hold Steady - Stay Positive
1. Children 18:3 - Children 18:3

Children 18:3 @ Club1

After hearing about Children 18:3's legendary (at least locally legendary) live shows for years, I finally witnessed the spectacle first hand last night.

Suffice it to say, they are one of the most energetic and frenzied live bands I've ever seen. Seth Hostetter might be the bet drummer I've seen, and that's not something I say lightly. If that's what they play like when they're sick and not feeling 100%, I can't imagine what they'd do when everything was clicking.

The band hit up all my favorites, blending seemlessly between 'All My Balloons' and 'LCM' before tearing into 'Time and Wasted Bullets' and pretty much keeping the needle pegged the entire time - with one short break to, in their words "catch [their] breath". Everything from begining to end was a furious blaze of flying guitars, almost impossibly fast drumming, and just an overall sense of ROCK.

I highly recommend seeing the band live. It's no secret I greatly enjoyed the CD, but seeing the show completes the experience.

CD Review: Children 18:3

It's no secret that I've been looking forward to this CD for quite a while (basically since 2006, when they shockingly made my 8th favorite album of the year). I eagerly listened to the new versions of 'LCM' and 'You Know We're All So Fond of Dying', and liked what I was hearing, but I already knew that these were good songs, and while Songs of Desperation was good, it was pretty front-loaded, and my favorite 3 songs off of the CD were coming back. I began to worry that the band had already run out of gas.

No worries.

Having been familiar with a bit of their earlier work, it's no shock that the riffs are pummeling, or that the instruments are all played fantastically. It does, however, come as a pleasant surprise how tuneful the album is. As I said last month, they clean up nicely. David actually has a pretty decent voice when he puts his mind to it, and the male/female vocal play between him and LeeMarie is done as well as any act I can remember. It never feels like a gimmick, and they both really stepped up their game for these recordings.

The mish-mash of genres (including garage rock, punk, straight up rock, and even ska) never comes across as forced, and there really aren't any weak tracks. If this sounds a touch fanboyish, keep in mind that 3 years ago, I disliked this band enough to sell an old EP I had bought to my brother. They've come a long way as songwriters since then, and it really shows here.

Children 18:3 have put together one of the most consistantly engaging CDs in recent memory. It's not often that a CD like this comes along. Check into this album immediately. You won't regret it.

9/10

Standout tracks:
Children 18:3 - LCM (mp3)
Children 18:3 - You Know We're All So Fond of Dying (mp3)
Children 18:3 - Even Sleeping

Incoming: Children 18:3

"Songs of Desperation" was one of the hidden gems of 2006. The EP changed my perception of Children 18:3 completely. The fact that they are going to take the 3 best songs from that release, clean them up a bit, and put them on their major(ish) label debut excites me.

'Clean up' is, of course, a relative term in this case, as the tracks still have a rawness to them that's not often allowed to be seen in music these days. LCM still has Lee Marie's banshee screams. David still sounds nothing like a pop singer. From the little I've heard, their sound has just been allowed the chance to be refined a touch. Nothing wrong with that (though the strings in 'LCM' are a bit odd... what business do they have in that song?). I'm pumped for the debut; February 26th is coming.

Check out Children 18:3's MySpace, and listen to the 2 new songs (LCM & You Know We're All So Fond of Dying)


Side note: Oasis songs for download on Rock Band!! Good times!